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49 "Now if you will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me. And if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left." 50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, "The thing comes from the Lord; we cannot speak to you either bad or good. 51 Here is Rebekah before you; take her and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as the Lord has spoken." 52 And it came to pass, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, that he worshiped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth. 53 Then the servant brought out jewelry of silver, jewelry of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious things to her brother and to her mother. 54 And he and the men who were with him ate and drank and stayed all night. Then they arose in the morning, and he said, "Send me away to my master." 55 But her brother and her mother said, "Let the young woman stay with us a few days, at least ten; after that she may go." 56 And he said to them, "Do not hinder me, since the Lord has prospered my way; send me away so that I may go to my master." 57 So they said, "We will call the young woman and ask her personally." 58 Then they called Rebekah and said to her, "Will you go with this man?" And she said, "I will go." ~ Genesis 24:49-58
Today, we return to our study of Genesis 24 where Abraham's faith is still on full display. Abraham sent his main servant to his old hometown to find a wife for his son Isaac, and after the servant arrived, he discovered that the Lord had led him specifically to the young woman who would be Isaac's wife. Today, we return to the tail end of the conversation that had been going on between Abraham's servant and Rebekah's family.
In v.49-51 of today's passage we read, "49 Now if you will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me. And if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left." 50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, "The thing comes from the Lord; we cannot speak to you either bad or good. 51 Here is Rebekah before you; take her and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as the Lord has spoken."
Abraham's servant had told Rebekah's family the story of how his master, Abraham, sent him to their town to find a wife from among their people. Having given them all the details of how God had led him thus, Abraham's servant asked if he could return to his master Abraham with Rebekah. The phrase "I may turn to the right hand or to the left," is an idiom which means that he had other options which he planned to pursue if they were not in agreement in allowing Rebekah to return with him. To this request, Rebekah's dad and brother granted to Abraham's servant Rebekah to be the wife of Isaac. God led Abraham's servant to travel the long distance from Canaan to Mesopotamia to find the wife of his Master's son, Isaac.
This is how God works daily in the lives of those who desire to be defined by Him. He divinely orchestrates our lives with all of the twists and turns which seem to be random in the moment. At the end of the day, we see the tapestry that only He can bring to fruition. As a result, Rebekah not only became the daughter-in-law of Abraham and Sarah, and not only did she become the wife of Isaac, she also became a descendent of the Lord Jesus Christ. Rebekah pictures for us all of those down through the years who have trusted in the Lord Jesus for forgiveness of sin and salvation. Such are known in the Scriptures as the Bride of Christ who have been adorned by Him to be his wife.
In v.52-54 of today's passage we read, "52 And it came to pass, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, that he worshiped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth. 53 Then the servant brought out jewelry of silver, jewelry of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious things to her brother and to her mother. 54 And he and the men who were with him ate and drank and stayed all night. Then they arose in the morning, and he said, "Send me away to my master."
In response to Laban and Bethuel's affirmative response, Abraham's servant prostrated himself to the earth in humble adoration and in great gratitude for the gracious hand of the Lord upon his journey. In the same way, the Spirit of God rejoices over each person that He woos to the point where they call on the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. Along with the Holy Spirit, the Bible informs us that the angels in heaven also rejoice over each believer who trusts in the Lord Jesus.
After worshipping the Lord, Abraham's servant gave to Rebekah jewelry of silver and gold and clothing. He also gave to her family a dowry. He then asked that nothing hinder him in his travels back to Canaan, especially since God so graciously orchestrated the events of the passing days.
This passage brings up the subject of arranged marriages which really takes us back to the very first man and woman on earth, Adam and Eve. It has always been that these types of marriages have been known to last because the love of the couple came through their commitment to one another. Today, we place priority on emotional love first and this model has shown to fail, time and time again.
The Bible’s model of marriage has always been founded in unconditional love, not on a selfish love that causes us to look for what is in it for the self. As we have continued to move away from the biblical model, we have increasingly suffered the results of our choices in failed marriages and broken families. This is not God's design because God designed that our marriages be based upon our commitment to one another. There is a place for emotion in a marriage, but the feelings must follow the commitment and not the other way around.
In v.55 of today's passage we read, "But her brother and her mother said, 'Let the young woman stay with us a few days, at least ten; after that she may go.'"
In our walk with the Lord we will always, this side of heaven, be presented with possible road blocks. This is to be expected and we should not be surprised by the road blocks. In fact, I have often discovered that the Lord uses even these things to accomplish His will in the matter. There is a fine line between our faith in the Lord and our trust in the Lord. While our faith is the guiding rudder in our walk with the Lord, our trust is acting on that faith. Faith is believing that God is who He says He is and that what He will do, He will according to His will. But trust takes things a step further. Trust makes the willful choice to believe that God will do what He promises. One involves the head and the other the heart. Faith without trust is not faith. Many believe certain facts about the Lord Jesus Christ, but knowing those facts to be true is not biblical faith. The biblical definition of faith requires trust in a commitment to the promises God has made to us.
In v.56-58 of today's passage we read, "56 And he said to them, 'Do not hinder me, since the Lord has prospered my way; send me away so that I may go to my master.' 57 So they said, 'We will call the young woman and ask her personally.' 58 Then they called Rebekah and said to her, 'Will you go with this man?' And she said, 'I will go.'"
Rebekah's decision to go to Canaan with Abraham's servant was one of tremendous faith both in the providence of God and in the promises of a marriage to a man she had only heard about and she had never seen. Her response to Isaac pictures for us the call of the redeemed and our answer. Even though we have not seen the Lord Jesus and we only know about Him by what the Holy Spirit has provided, we have answered in the affirmative. We have been called by the Spirit to an offer that we could not render ourselves. This call was given by the Holy Spirit and we have responded in the same manner as Rebekah with the words, "I will go."
